General
Dynamics European Land Systems developed a new range of light bridge
system, the Medium Trackway Bridge. This new light bridge can be easily
transported and launched by a light military vehicle. It is composed
of 4 to 8 main elements according to the length of the bridge, which
can vary from 4 to 8 meters.The MTB allows crossing of obstacle or river
on the battle field, in a very short time and with an immediate availability.

The increased
need for a self-sufficient gap-crossing capability for ground
forces has lead to the development of the Medium Trackway
Bridge (MTB), a aluminium-construction modular lightweight
bridge for military and civilian vehicles up to MLC 40 that
can be connected to form bridge lengths of 2, 4, 6 or 8 m.For
the installation of the bridge, a launcher system is mounted
at the front of an armoured vehicle. A winch is fitted on
the top of the launching system which is in charge to deploy
the bridge over the obstacle or the river.The launching /
retrieving time for a 4 m MTB is approximately 10 minutes
with 4 soldiers.

Combat
use

The
MTB enables tactical vehicles with no or very little gap-crossing
capability to enhance their mobility on the battlefield without
being reliant on bridging engineer units. This not only increasing
their manoeuvrability but also their protection as it allows
troops options to detour potential risk areas. The single bridge
modules can be transported directly on the vehicle, including
light tactical vehicles, and can easily be launched and retrieved
on the same vehicle by the crew with a simple adapter. The MTB
light bridge can be launched by a 4 t class armoured vehicle.
The launcher system has an approximate weight of 90 kg.